Melamine resin

Melamine-formaldehyde can be cured by heating, which induces dehydration and crosslinking. The crosslinking can be carried out to a limited degree to give resins. Either the melamine-formaldehyde resins or melamine-formaldehyde "monomer" can be cured by treatment with any of several polyols. {{citation needed|date=July 2024}}

The principal use of melamine resin is as the main constituent of high-pressure laminates, such as Formica and Arborite, and of laminate flooring. Melamine-resin tile wall panels can also be used as whiteboards.{{cite encyclopedia|author=H. Deim |author2=G. Matthias |author3=R. A. Wagner |title=Amino Resins|encyclopedia=Ullmann's Encyclopedia of Industrial Chemistry|year=2012|publisher=Wiley-VCH|place=Weinheim|doi=10.1002/14356007.a02_115.pub2|isbn=978-3-527-30673-2}} Melamine formaldehyde is used in plastic laminate and overlay materials. Formaldehyde is more tightly bound in melamine-formaldehyde than it is in urea-formaldehyde. This results in somewhat reduced levels of harmful formaldehyde emissions.

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Image:Ladle melamine 18j07.JPG]]

Melamine resin is often used in kitchen utensils and plates (such as Melmac). Because of its high dielectric constant ranging from 7.2 to 8.4, melamine resin utensils and bowls are not microwave safe.{{cite web | publisher = Michigan State University Extension | work = Home Maintenance and Repair | date = 2003-06-24 | title = Melamine Plastic | author = Anne Field | url = http://www.msue.msu.edu/objects/content_revision/download.cfm/revision_id.493538/workspace_id.-4/01500096.html/ |access-date=2016-12-30 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140327144152/http://www.msue.msu.edu/objects/content_revision/download.cfm/revision_id.493538/workspace_id.-4/01500096.html/ |archive-date=2014-03-27 }}

During the late 1950s and 1960s melamine tableware became fashionable. Aided by the stylish modern designs of A. H. Woodfull and the Product Design Unit of British Industrial Plastics, it was thought to threaten the dominant position of ceramics in the market. In the late 1960s the tendency of melamine cups and plates to become stained and scratched led to a decline in sales, and eventually the material became largely restricted to the camping and nursery markets, in which its light weight and resistance to breaking were valued.

{{cite journal

| title= The Rise and Fall of Melamine Tableware

| journal= Plastiquarian

| issue= 32

| date= Summer 2004

| page= 10

| publisher= Plastics Historical Society

| url= http://www.plastiquarian.com/styr3n3/pqs/pq32.htm

| access-date= 2008-12-12

| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20080625052055/http://www.plastiquarian.com/styr3n3/pqs/pq32.htm

| archive-date= 2008-06-25

}}

Melamine resin is often used to saturate decorative paper that is laminated under heat and pressure and then pasted onto particle board; the resulting panel, often called melamine, is commonly used in ready-to-assemble furniture and kitchen cabinets.

Melamine is available in diverse sizes and thicknesses, as well as a large number of colors and patterns. The sheets are heavy for their size, and the resin is prone to chipping when being cut with conventional table saws.{{cite web | publisher = Pro Woodworking Tips.com | title = Melamine | url = http://www.prowoodworkingtips.com/Melamine.html | access-date = 2008-10-14 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120105170929/http://www.prowoodworkingtips.com/Melamine.html | archive-date = 2012-01-05 }}

Melamine, with the addition of formaldehyde, cyanuric acid, and DETA (diethylenetriamine) has been demonstrated to bind CO₂ for purposes of carbon capture, according to researchers at Stanford, Berkeley, and Texas A&M.{{Cite web |title=Researchers use melamine to create effective, low-cost carbon capture; potential tailpipe application |url=https://www.greencarcongress.com/2022/08/20220805-mao.html |access-date=2022-08-07 |website=Green Car Congress}}

Melamine-based resin (e.g., melamine-formaldehyde or melamine-urea-formaldehyde resins) can also be used to microencapsulate active agents, such as healing agents or phase change materials, to prevent leakage above their melting temperature.{{Cite journal |last1=Fredi |first1=Giulia |last2=Dorigato |first2=Andrea |last3=Fambri |first3=Luca |last4=Pegoretti |first4=Alessandro |date=June 2020 |title=Detailed experimental and theoretical investigation of the thermomechanical properties of epoxy composites containing paraffin microcapsules for thermal management |url=https://4spepublications.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/pen.25374 |journal=Polymer Engineering & Science |language=en |volume=60 |issue=6 |pages=1202–1220 |doi=10.1002/pen.25374 |s2cid=216460628 |issn=0032-3888|url-access=subscription }}{{Cite journal |last1=Fredi |first1=Giulia |last2=Dorigato |first2=Andrea |last3=Unterberger |first3=Seraphin |last4=Artuso |first4=Nicolò |last5=Pegoretti |first5=Alessandro |date=2019-04-20 |title=Discontinuous carbon fiber/polyamide composites with microencapsulated paraffin for thermal energy storage |url=https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/app.47408 |journal=Journal of Applied Polymer Science |language=en |volume=136 |issue=16 |doi=10.1002/app.47408 |s2cid=104399139 |issn=0021-8995|url-access=subscription }} The resulting surface is quite inert and can hardly be modified with traditional techniques such as silanization. Some research has shown that polydopamine can be effective as a surface modifier for this resin.{{Cite journal |last1=Fredi |first1=Giulia |last2=Simon |first2=Frank |last3=Sychev |first3=Dmitrii |last4=Melnyk |first4=Inga |last5=Janke |first5=Andreas |last6=Scheffler |first6=Christina |last7=Zimmerer |first7=Cordelia |date=2020-08-11 |title=Bioinspired Polydopamine Coating as an Adhesion Enhancer Between Paraffin Microcapsules and an Epoxy Matrix |journal=ACS Omega |language=en |volume=5 |issue=31 |pages=19639–19653 |doi=10.1021/acsomega.0c02271 |issn=2470-1343 |pmc=7424712 |pmid=32803059}}{{Cite journal |last1=Fredi |first1=Giulia |last2=Zimmerer |first2=Cordelia |last3=Scheffler |first3=Christina |last4=Pegoretti |first4=Alessandro |date=2020-11-22 |title=Polydopamine-Coated Paraffin Microcapsules as a Multifunctional Filler Enhancing Thermal and Mechanical Performance of a Flexible Epoxy Resin |journal=Journal of Composites Science |language=en |volume=4 |issue=4 |pages=174 |doi=10.3390/jcs4040174 |issn=2504-477X |doi-access=free |hdl=11572/328924 |hdl-access=free }}

Melamine-formaldehyde resin forms via the condensation of formaldehyde with melamine to give, under idealized conditions, the hexa-hydroxymethyl derivative. Upon heating in the presence of acid, this or similar hydroxymethylated species undergoes further condensation and crosslinking. Linkages between the heterocycles include mono-, di-, and polyethers. The microstructure of the material can be analyzed by NMR spectroscopy.David R. Bauer "Melamine/formaldehyde crosslinkers: characterization, network formation and crosslink degradation" Progress in Organic Coatings 1986, Volume 14, pp. 193–218. {{doi|10.1016/0033-0655(86)80001-2}} The crosslinking density of melamine resins can be controlled by co-condensation with bifunctional analogues of melamine, benzoguanamine and acetoguanamine.

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• Melamine foam is a special form of melamine resin. It is used mainly as an insulating and soundproofing material and more recently as a cleaning abrasive.
• Formica is a brand of composite materials manufactured by the Formica Corporation. In common use, the term refers to the company's classic product, a heat-resistant, wipe-clean, plastic laminate of paper or fabric with melamine resin.

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Category:Kitchenware

Category:Building materials

Category:Organic polymers

Category:Thermosetting plastics